2025-11-29 23:26
HOUSTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Saturday authorized the sale of shares in the Venezuela-owned parent of Citgo Petroleum to an affiliate of Elliott Investment Management, following his approval earlier this week of a $5.9 billion bid from the company in a court-organized auction to pay Venezuela-linked creditors. The sale order is the last major legal step to wrap a two-year auction aimed at paying up to 15 creditors for debt defaults and expropriations in the South American country. Sign up here. In a case first introduced by miner Crystallex against Venezuela in 2017, the Delaware court found Citgo's parent PDV Holding liable for the OPEC country's debt, opening the door for over a dozen additional creditors to join the auction. The bid from Elliott's Amber Energy, which includes a key agreement to pay $2.1 billion to the holders of a defaulted Venezuelan bond, had been recommended earlier this year by a court officer overseeing the auction, in a switch from his previous recommendation of an offer from rival bidder Gold Reserve (GRZ.V) , opens new tab. The change triggered a flurry of objections and challenges to Amber's bid, which were overruled by Delaware Judge Leonard Stark. But parties in the case including Venezuela have said they will appeal Stark's confirmation of Amber's bid. "The consideration to be provided by the buyer under the stock purchase agreement is fair, adequate, and reasonable consideration for the PDVH shares and constitutes an adequate price for the purchase of the PDVH shares under the terms of the Sale Procedures Order," Judge Stark said in his order. More than half a dozen creditors are set to cash proceeds from the auction if the transaction is completed. The sale is expected to close next year pending approvals from regulators and the U.S. Treasury Department, Amber said earlier this week. Those creditors include oil producer ConocoPhillips (COP.N) , opens new tab, miners Crystallex and Rusoro Mining, and industrial conglomerates O-I Glass (OI.N) , opens new tab and Koch. Upon closing, the buyer will assume no liabilities related to Citgo's ultimate parent, Venezuela's oil company PDVSA, or the Republic, the judge said. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-judge-authorizes-sale-citgo-parents-shares-elliott-affiliate-2025-11-29/
2025-11-29 18:27
Death toll rises after cyclone sweeps through Sri Lanka Some homes left under water and without power Police, navy and army distribute food and clear roads MALWANA, Sri Lanka, Nov 29 (Reuters) - At least 153 people have been killed in Sri Lanka after landslides and flooding caused by Cyclone Ditwah, officials said on Saturday, with 191 others missing and more than half a million affected nationwide. More than 78,000 people have been moved to nearly 800 relief centres, mostly set up in schools, the Disaster Management Centre said. Sign up here. Thousands of police, navy personnel and army troops are distributing food, clearing roads and moving trapped families to safety. WORST FLOODING IN A DECADE Those who have found refuge in relief centres include Mallika Kumari, whose home was quickly submerged up to the roof on Friday. She bundled her three children into a rented lorry with her husband and spent the night by the roadside. Kumari and her 554 neighbours live alongside the Kelani River in Malwana, 20 km (12 miles) from Colombo, and face the worst flooding in a decade. Rescue boats are transporting stranded families, including Kumari, who hoped to collect her children's clothes and school books from her home. "I first heard about the flood warning on TV but we never expected the river to overflow so quickly. We just rushed out of the house without anything," Kumari told Reuters. "We haven't even had breakfast. Two of my sons have caught the flu. I have to get them medication. I've brought a few garbage bags to collect their clothes." In the rush, Kumari left behind her cat, which was later picked up by a navy boat and brought to dry land. HOMES UNDER WATER AND WITHOUT POWER The flooding in Malwana and other low-lying areas near Colombo has left most homes under water and without power, authorities said. Meteorological authorities have forecast continued rains over the weekend, raising fears of further flooding in already waterlogged regions. Some residents opted to remain in the upper floors of partially submerged homes, protecting their belongings. Local businesses, including pharmacies, supermarkets and fabric shops are inundated, heightening concerns over financial losses as shop owners worry about long-term recovery. At the Dalugala Thakiya Mosque, volunteers prepared rice parcels with chicken and dhal curry for flood victims, aiming to increase capacity by Sunday. "We are getting more requests for food because people who work daily jobs cannot find work and are running low on savings," said Risham Ahmed, one of the meal organisers. "They are worried about how to piece their lives back together." https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/death-toll-sri-lanka-rises-153-after-cyclone-ditwah-2025-11-29/
2025-11-29 16:58
DAKAR, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Four Malian employees of Barrick Mining (ABX.TO) , opens new tab have been released a year after they were detained in the capital Bamako amid a dispute between the company and the government, three sources told Reuters on Saturday. The two sides had been in a standoff over the implementation of the West African country's new mining code that gave Mali a bigger share of revenue from gold miners as gold prices surged to a record high. Sign up here. The Canadian miner said on Monday it had reached an agreement with Mali's government to resolve all disputes over the Loulo-Gounkoto gold mining complex after two years of negotiations. The agreement included Mali releasing the four employees from prison, where they had been held since November 2024, according to a statement from the company. The sources who confirmed the release asked not to be named because they were not authorised to discuss the matter. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/barrick-employees-released-mali-prison-after-deal-sources-say-2025-11-29/
2025-11-29 16:36
OPEC+ members to stick to output targets Group agrees mechanism to assess members' maximum production capacity Mechanism to be used for setting output baselines from 2027 LONDON/MOSCOW, Nov 30 (Reuters) - OPEC+ agreed to leave oil output levels unchanged for the first quarter of 2026 at its meetings on Sunday as the group slows down its push to regain market share amid fears of a looming supply glut. The meeting of OPEC+, which pumps half of the world's oil, comes during a fresh U.S. effort to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, which could add to oil supply if sanctions on Russia are eased. Sign up here. If the peace deal fails, Russia could see its supply curbed further by sanctions. OPEC+ groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies led by Russia. Brent crude closed on Friday near $63 a barrel, down 15% this year. "The message from the group was clear: stability outweighs ambition at a time when the market outlook is deteriorating rapidly," said Jorge Leon, a former OPEC official who now works as head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy. OVER 3 MILLION BPD OF OUTPUT CUTS STILL IN PLACE Eight OPEC+ members have paused oil output hikes for the first quarter of 2026 after releasing some 2.9 million barrels per day into the market since April 2025, and Sunday's meeting reaffirmed that decision, OPEC said in a statement. OPEC+ still has about 3.24 million bpd of output cuts in place, representing around 3% of global demand. The Sunday meetings did not alter those. These comprise a 2 million bpd oil output cut by most members which is in place until the end of 2026, and the remaining 1.24 million bpd of a 1.65 million bpd reduction that the eight members started to return to the market in October. CAPACITY ASSESSMENT TO BE DONE BETWEEN JANUARY AND SEPTEMBER OPEC said the OPEC+ group had approved a mechanism to assess members' maximum production capacity to be used for setting output baselines from 2027, against which members' output targets are set. The assessment will be done between January and September 2026, sources said after the meetings, in time for 2027 output quotas to be decided. One company will assess capacity of 19 of the 22 OPEC+ members, the sources said. Capacity in countries that are under sanctions will be assessed either by a separate company or by using an average of their oil output figures for August through October 2026. Among the OPEC+ members, Russia, Iran and Venezuela are under Western sanctions. OPEC+ has been discussing the production capacity and quotas issue for years and it has proved difficult because some members such as the United Arab Emirates have increased capacity and want higher quotas. Other members such as African countries have seen declines in production capacity but are resisting quota cuts. Angola quit the group in 2024 over a disagreement about its production quotas. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/opec-set-hold-oil-output-policy-steady-sunday-sources-say-2025-11-29/
2025-11-29 13:37
Nov 29 (Reuters) - At least two people were killed and three wounded by Kurdish security forces during a protest outside of the Lanaz refinery on the road to the northern Iraqi city of Erbil, security and medical sources said on Saturday. Security sources the protesters were holding a protest to demand job opportunities within the refinery, during which the security forces assigned to guard the site opened fire. Sign up here. The security sources added the shooting resulted in the death of a protester and a truck driver transporting petroleum products. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/least-two-killed-three-wounded-by-security-forces-outside-lanaz-refinery-near-2025-11-29/
2025-11-29 12:46
MADRID, Nov 29 (Reuters) - About one third of Spanish pork export certificates have been blocked after the first outbreak of swine fever for three decades, Spain's agriculture minister said on Saturday. "Of the 400 export certificates to 104 countries, a third are blocked. We are working to open them as quickly as possible," Agriculture Minister Luis Planas told a press conference. Sign up here. The virus, last recorded in Spain in 1994, was detected in six wild boar near Barcelona. Planas said the value of the country's pork exports is 8.8 billion euros ($10.20 billion), of which 58% goes to the European Union. He said exports to the EU were not affected except those which fell within a 20-kilometre zone near the source of the outbreak. "Our task is to keep international markets open," he added. Spain's northeastern region of Catalonia has barred access to a major natural park after six wild boar found dead near Barcelona tested positive for African swine fever. The Collserola park was closed for all leisure activities and outdoor activities were restricted in 60 villages near the centre of the outbreak, the Catalan Agriculture Ministry said late on Friday. Catalan authorities will deploy traps for wild boar and deploy police to enforce barriers to the area. African swine fever is not harmful to humans but spreads rapidly among pigs and wild boar. Taiwan was the latest country to announce restrictions on Spanish pork imports, when its agriculture ministry said on Saturday it had banned all pork products and live pig imports. China has banned pork imports from Barcelona province, a Chinese Customs document seen by Reuters showed. Britain on Friday said it would temporarily stop imports of pork meat from Catalonia. Mexico has suspended imports of pork products from Spain. $1 = 0.8624 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/one-third-spanish-pork-export-certificates-blocked-since-swine-fever-outbreak-2025-11-29/
